Leading from the Front: What Julius Caesar Taught Me About Business
Some lessons stay with us for life. Others shape how we lead.
When I was eleven years old, I met Julius Caesar. Not the man, of course, but the leader, the strategist, the writer.
It happened in a dusty Latin classroom, translating a passage from De Bello Gallico. The assignment was routine. The impact wasn’t. In the text, Caesar saw his troops faltering and did something extraordinary. He stepped out of the safety of command and into the chaos of battle. Shield in hand, he rallied his soldiers not with words, but with presence.
That story never left me.
It was the first time I understood that leadership is not a title. It’s a decision. A posture. A way of showing up, especially when things are difficult.
When Leadership Becomes Remote.
In modern business, we’ve built entire structures to keep leaders removed from the action: dashboards, executive summaries, filtered reports, Zoom briefings. These tools are helpful, but they can create distance. And in that distance, something essential is lost: the leader’s presence.
Too often, presence is mistaken for control. But it’s not about micromanagement. It’s about proximity to reality. It’s about credibility. When your team sees you engaging, not just observing they start to believe again. In the mission. In you. In themselves.
And belief, in uncertain times, is everything.
From the Boardroom to the Front Line.
Years after that Latin class, I found myself in a boardroom with a struggling direct sales team. Their challenge was clear: low client retention, growing internal frustration, and a loss of momentum. They didn’t need a new KPI dashboard. They needed clarity. Direction. Hope.
So I took off my jacket, rolled up my sleeves, and joined them for the day.
We didn’t fix everything in an afternoon. But we made progress. More importantly, we shifted the energy. The team saw that leadership wasn’t distant. It was beside them. Among them.
That was enough to restart motion, and motion creates results.
Courage is Contagious.
Leadership doesn’t always happen in suits or spreadsheets. I once captained a small football team. We were skilled but hesitant, especially against a team known for its aggression. One player in particular dominated the field by intimidation alone.
I decided to meet him head-on with the first tackle of the game. Not out of violence, but to send a message: we’re not here to back down.
That single moment recalibrated the team. It wasn’t about strength. It was about posture. As leaders, we often underestimate how deeply our posture, whether physical or emotional, sets the tone for those around us.
Courage, like fear, is contagious.
What It Means to Lead Today.
You don’t need to wield a shield or tackle an opponent to lead with presence. But you do need to step forward when it matters.
Understand the Terrain: Know what your people are facing. Read the data, but also walk the floor. Listen. Ask. See for yourself.
Show Up in the Hard Moments: It’s easy to lead in growth. Harder in downturns. Your presence during difficulty is your legacy.
Act Before You Speak: People follow what you model, not what you declare. Demonstrate the standard before you expect it.
Create Emotional Safety: Teams perform best when they feel safe to express, experiment, and even fail. That safety starts with you.
Lead with Humanity: Competence earns respect. Presence earns trust. And trust is the foundation of every meaningful result.
Leadership Is Not Symbolic; It’s Practical.
When Caesar stepped onto the battlefield, he wasn’t making a symbolic gesture. He was changing the outcome.
That’s the essence of presence. You don’t show up to be seen. You show up to make a difference.
In a world obsessed with optimisation and distance, perhaps the most strategic move a leader can make is to get closer.
Not to everything.
But to the things that matter most.
Francois Jacquemin